Air Force's new 'virtual Finance' takes customers out of waiting line

by Tech. Sgt. Phyllis Hanson
Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs

7/9/2010 - WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- The Air Force's new "virtual Finance" is giving work time back to Airmen and civilians by providing a host of secure financial services that customers can access with a mouse click.

Replacing the "Money - Finance Central" page on the Air Force Portal, the virtual finance page was developed with a customer's time in mind. The page brings Air Force finance customers some online capabilities commercial financial institutions provide their clients.

"This redesigned page greatly enhances finance 'do-it-yourself' capabilities, making the Web and online assistance your initial resource to obtain financial help," said Dr. Jamie Morin, the assistant secretary for financial management and comptroller.

For issues which cannot be resolved through the virtual finance page, customers can use a look-up tool which gives them a telephone number to call, as well as an e-mail address to their local financial services office.

While click and call are the first steps in tackling finance issues, Airmen can still walk to their local financial services office and receive quality customer service, Dr. Morin added.

The "click, call, walk" vision empowers finance customers to access more information and applications which previously required a finance office visit to be accomplished.

"The Air Force has a long tradition of taking care of its people, and we intend to continue this tradition," Dr. Morin said.

The virtual finance page, located under the portal's "Life and Career" tab, should not be confused with myPay, which is also located on Air Force Portal. Virtual finance provides enhanced financial information, bringing together financial services information and self-help applications in one place for customers on the secure Air Force Portal.

Customers can get help with everything from travel pay and moving allowances, to in-processing, retirement and separation. Direct links to popular sites such as myPay, LeaveWeb and the Citi government travel card website, and tools such as deployment entitlement and permanent change of station entitlement calculators are also available.

Air Force finance officials also recently expanded their virtual knowledge library, with almost 1,000 categorized frequently asked questions, as well as more than 100 "instant advice" pages available.

"Feedback is vital to ensuring the new financial services portal is successful," Dr. Morin said. "Customer feedback on the initial draft helped shape the current design."